Packing machine



Juhe 10, 1941. I I LQNG I 2,244,718

' PAcxING MACHINE Filed May 6, 1939 10 Sheets-Sheet 1 Inveni'on Geo reLon MW June 10, 1941. G. LONG 2,244,718

PACKING MACHINE Filed May 6, 1939 l0 Sheets-Sheet 2 '1 I [Ill use 4.

Inven'tOr':

Jun: 10; 1941. O

ucxme momma Filed May 6, 1939 10 Sheets-Sheet 3 Inventor: Ggor-geggdozg.I tier-n23.

1941- a. LONG 2,244,718

PACKING MACHINE Filed May 6, 1939 10 Sheets-Sheet 4 Inventor;

June 10, 1941. G, LONG 2,244,718

PACKING MACHINE Filed May 6, 1939 10 Shets-Sheet e Fig-8 Inventor:Greer-5e Lo B I v Kttorneg.

June 10, 1941. a. LONG 2,244,718

PQCKING MACHINE Filed May 6, 1939 1O Sheets-Shut. 9

Invenfor'. eor e Lo After-n65 PACKING momma Filed May 6, 1959' 10Sheets-Sheet 10 Invent-or: Geore Lo far-n65.

Patented June 10, 1941 came MACHINE George Long, St. Paul, Minn,assignor to General Mills, 1110-, a corp ration of Delaware ApplicationMay 6, '1939, Serial No. 272,209

3- Claims.

This invention relates to a machine for positively packing various kindsof granular or powdered material, but more especially flour, in-

to a container or bag, particularly where said out the filling processas the bag gradually descends.

Another object is the provision of means for preventing spill oi flourdue to withdrawing the filled bag from the filling tube particularlywhen the bags are short ones.

In the operation of flour packers it is customary to pack the flour inthe bag and then weigh the filled bag which usually requires adding to,or deducting from the'contents of the bag until the required amount isregistered on the weighing scales, or the fiour is usually weighed by amechanically r electrically operated mechanism within the packer andthen automatically released to the bag thru a packing mechanism.

Another object therefore of my invention is to provide a flour bagpacking machine which requires its operator to manually place by meansor its filling opening, a bag around a fiour discharge pipe or casinghaving a reticulated end so that the base of the bag will contact saidend while at the same time it will automatically be retained around thecasing by resilient means thereby permitting it to move downward alongsaid discharge pipe during the period of time the flour is being forcedandpacked into said bag and relieved of the entrained air normally inthe flour bya pair of opposite revolving right and left hand screws thatautomatically stop rotating when they have made a predetermined numberof rotations, the flour still in the filling tube being retained thereinby means of a net, screen or grill.

A further object is to provide a flour packing machine that haselectrical and mechanical combinations which operate in sequence and incombination with each other to provide resilient means, after a bag hasbeen placed by means of its filling end upwards and around the dischargeend of a flour discharge pipe, which permits said bag to move downwardsalong said discharge pipe during the flour bag packing operation, withmeans for stopping after said operation all fiour packing mechanism andin sequence releasing the bag retaining means and said stopping means totheir neutral position.

Another object is to provide a flour packing machine having driving andbraking means for the flour feed screws in a transmission that operatesin combination with a hydraulic control valve havin'g electricalsolenoids that are controlled electrically from mechanism on the flourpacking machine which operates a sliding piston in the hydraulic controlvalve and the movement of said piston within the valve chamber regulatesthe hydraulic pressure from said valve to the transmission so that theangers will be driven by a transmission clutch during the fiour packingperiods and will be stopped by a transmission braking clutch at the end01' said period.

A still further object is to provide a flour packing machine with two ormore rotating flour packing feed screws within a flour discharge casing,each having either a left or right hand continuous spirally arranged webintegral with a central shaft member coac'ting in closely overlapping orinterlocking relation and each ro- 'tating in a direction opposite tothe other, so

that the flour from the flour feed hopper will be forced down in anaxial direction in the casing by the screws and also remove entrainedair normally contained with the flour from the hour as it is compressedwithin the bag.

Additional objects'and advantages of the invention will become apparentfrom the following description, when considered in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings forming a part 01 this specification, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of the upper half of the machine.

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of the lower half of the machine.

Figs. 1 and-2 together complete a side elevational view of the machine.

Fig. 3 is. a central vertical sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 6showing the upper half oi the machine.

Fig. 4 is a central vertical sectional view on the line l4 of Fig. 7showing the lower part of the machine. 7

Figs. 3 and 4 together complete a vertical sectional view thru themachine.

Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view of the lower portion of the machineon the line 5-! of Figs. 10 and 11 showing the mechanism for startingand retaining, also for releasing the bag retaining means.

Fig. 6 is a central vertical front elevational sectional view on theline 6-6 of Fig. 3 taken at right angle to Fig. 3 showing the upper partof the machine.

Fig. 7 is a front elevational view, partly in section, showing the lowerpart of the machine.

Figs. 6 and 7 together complete a front elevational sectional view ofthe machine.

Fig. 8 is a top plan vieWornthe line 88 of Fig. 6. K

Fig. 9 is a horizontal sectional view on the line 9-9 of Fig. 6.

Fig. 10 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view on the line ||0 of Fig.7 showing the bag retaining means.

Fig. 11 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view on the line of Fig. 7.

Fig. 12 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view on line |2-|2 of Fig. 6thru the upper portion of the transmission.

Fig. 13 is a front elevational view of the timing mechanism used to stopthe flour feed screws.

Fig. 14 is a horizontal sectional view on the line |4--|4 of Fig. 13.

Fig. 15 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sec-- tional view thru thewebs of the screws showing their coacting relation.

Fig. 16 is a; fragmentary front view of a. flour bag in position to befilled.

Fig. 17 is a vertical sectional view thru the hy The walls of the hopper29 converge downwardly (Fig. 3) to form a cylindrical discharge opening38 and are reinforced by an annular ring 39 that has interlockingtherewith by means of bolts 40 a lower discharge flour casing 4|. Thefilling opening 42 of said casing 4| is reinforced in like manner byannular ring 42 which in combination with ring 39 provides with bolts40, means by which it can be readily removed from the hopper 29 forinspection purposes.

It can be readily seen from the drawings that the entire combination offlour passageways are constructed and designed to allow the flour totravel freely down from its source of supply by gravity to the openings38 and 42 where it will then be forced down thru the reticulated orperdraulic electrically controlled valve used in combination with partsof the machine.

Fig. 18 is a schematic view showing the working combinations of. thevarious mechanical and electrical parts of the machine, in non-operatingpositions.

Referring to the drawings, numerals l0 and H, designate respectivelystationary floor and overhead members which in combination rigidlysupport vertically a pair of cylindrical standards l2 and I3, that haveclamped thereto, by means of bolt l4 near their upper extremities, twopairs of split clamping bearings l5 and I6, which are horizontallyconnected together in pairs by inverted L shaped ribs each rib incombination with its set of bearings being integral with a powertransmission case H! by means of which it is supported on saidstandards. Said case It has an upper cylindrical flange l9 havingattached thereto a cover plate 20 by means of bolts 2|,and a similarlower flange 22 which has in like manner attached thereto, and to eachother in vertical successive relation various bearing and gear housings23, 24 and 25, thus assembling together a complete set of housings thatare sealed against dust and air. The housings 25 has lower flanges 26integral therewith bolted at 21 to the rectangular shaped cover plate 28of the flour hopper 29 supported at 29' to standards l2 and I3.

The rear portion of said plate 28 has a flour receiving opening 30therein for the flour feed pipe 3| which receives flour from a sourceofsupply not shown. A baffle plate 32 (Fig. 3) is obliquely suspended ashort distance down from the underside of said plate 28 in the front ofopening 30 to prevent flour from overflowing the front upper chamber 33of the hopper 29, thus allowing the entrained air to readily escape outthru the pipe 34, attached to the opening 35 in plate 28. The pipe 34may have a suction blower (not shown) fastened thereto for assisting indrawing the air from the hopper thru the filter 36 and the bafflechamber 31, as shown in Fig, 9.

forated discharge end, screen or grill 45 of casing 46 when screws 43and 44 are revolving. As shown in Figs. 4 and '7, a filling tube in theform of a sleeve or casing 46 of oblong cross-section is formed integralat 41 with the converging wall 48 of the casing 4|. The construction ofthe casing or sleeve 46, as shown in Fig. 10, consists of abutting andwelding together at their vertical meeting edges 49, casings 50 and 5|which in cross section are more than semi-round, so that their interiorcontour will freely receive the peripheral surfaces of the right andleft hand helical feed screws 43 and 44 which are arranged inoverlapping relation to turn inopposite directions with the co-actingportions of the helical webs being arranged vertically in approximatelyclose juxtaposed relation to cause downward movement of the flour.

As best shown in Figs. 4 and 10, the casing 46 is reinforced by andenclosed in a longitudinal casing 52 of oblong cross-section which isconstructed to fit at 53 and 54 the outer semi-round portions of casings50 and 5|, while its straight portions 55 are spaced apart therefrom,thus forming a longitudinal chamber 56 which is sealed at the top 51 andopen at the bottom 58 for the purpose of making an air passageway whichis connected at 59 by an air supply line 60 that will be'referred tolater. Mounted with adjustable clamping bearings 6| is a bag platform62, located a suitable distance down from the bottom of the reticulateddischarge end 45. It must be understood that in place of said platformit may be preferable to use a conveyor. Located on the floor line belowthe bag platform 62, and at the rear of supporting base member ID, is anoil storage tank 63, having operatively associated therewith a combinedair relief and oil filler cap 63. The top of said tank supports anelectric motor 64 that drives by means of pulleys 65 and belt 66 thru acommon shaft 61 and a speed reducer 68 to an oil pressure pump 69 thatreceives oil from tank 63and delivers it to an electrically operatedhydraulic control valve 10 that is supported by suitable means tosupporting bracket I95.

The reduced speed shaft H ,of the speed reducer 68 has a sprocket wheel12 keyed thereto which drives thru chain 13 a sprocket I4 havingintegral therewith an annular ring 15 that has a plurality of internalelongated stub teeth 16 (Fig. 5) and a hub 11 which is freely rotatableon shaft 18 supported in bearings 19 integral with their respectiveclamping brackets and 8| on the standards l2 and I3. Keyed to shaft 18and interposed between bearings 19, and hub H,

is a driving member 82 having integral with and extending therefromextensions 83, 64, and 85 which are used in combination with the pawlannular ring to engage any one of the interdental spaces 9| of ring 15,when the detent 92 has been removed from engagement with projection 90,thru the movement of the levers 93, by the energization of solenoid 94,and the action of tension spring 95 between lug 98, on the hub of pawl88, and projection 85.

The projection 84 engaging projection 90', as shown in Fig. regulatesthe stopping of the shaft 18, caused by the resistance of the detent 92thru the pawl member 88. To insure that the shaft 18 will stop in adefinite position, I have provided a pivoted lever arm 91 which is undertension byspring 98 and adapted to engage a notch 99 in a disc I00, thatis'keyed to said shaft 18 adjacent the inner end of bearing 19 'onbracket 8|. The outer extremity of shaft 18, adjacent the other end ofbearing 19 on bracket 8|, has keyed thereon a cam IOI operating a leverI02 (Fig. 11) which is attached to the shaft of a mercury switch I02within the casing I03, said casing being attached to the extending ribof bracket 8|. Cam I04 which operates the bag retaining means is keyedto the other end of this same shaft 18 adjacent bearing 19 on bracket 80for engagement with a cam roller I05 attached by means of a shoulderbolt I05 to the end of a slotted flat bar I06 which is slidablevertically on a guide block I01 on said shaft 18. The bar I06 is at anormal rest position when there is no bag on themachine at which timethe roller I05 is againstthe'cam I94, as shown in Fig. 2 and it ismaintained in said position by means of the tension spring I08 connectedto bar I08 at I09 and also to bolt IIO. Threaded at III to the bar I06is an extension rod H2 connecting arm II3 for the purpose of rockingshaft II4 on which the arm is keyed in a counterclockwise direction whenlobe I I5 of cam I04 engages roller I08.

The lever arms that will now be referred to, operating in combinationwith those on shaft II4, operate the mechanism which retains byyieldable means a bag 13 about the casing 48 during the period ofpacking flour into said bag, the bag releasing means being a solenoid H8and the two tension springs I08 and I I1 as shown in Figs. 1, 2, 5 and10.

The shaft I I4 is journaled in bearings of plates II8 (Fig. 4) which areintegral with and extend rearwardly pdf'pendicular from supportingbrackets II9 on standards I2 and I3. These plates support two stationaryrods I20 which have attached thereto in spaced apart relation, bracketsI2I and I22 for receiving bearings I23 and their perpendicular shaftsI24 said bearings having integral therewith and extending in oppositehori-' zontal direction therefrom extensions I25 and I28. The outerextremity of extensions I25 serve as shafts for a pair of rubber-facedrolls I21 retained thereon by washers and bolts at I28, said rollshaving cased therein the usual bearing bushings as shown in dotted linesof Fig. 10. The other extensions I28 have a universal joint connection-I29 to the rods I30 which are operated together by a centrally locatedtoggle connection III in combination with a link I32 and an arm I38 thatis freely mounted on shaft H4 at the rear of casing 48. The abovementioned connec- I48-drive pulleys I5I and bevel pinion I52 of tions tothe various arms, linlm and rolls, all operate in combination with armsI35 and I38 that are fastened to shaft II4, to coast with arm II3 duringthe rocking movement of said shaft.

The arm I35 is mounted on shaft I I4v so it can engage and cause to moveby its extension I31 during said shaft movement. Said arm I83 hastherein adjustable handwheel bolt I38 to regulate the amount of itscounterclockwise movement, thus regulating the movement of all itsconnecting links and the amount of pressure the resilient rolls I21 willexert against the bag B on casing 46 during the flour bag packingperiod. The arm I23 operates during the turning of the shaft H4 incombination with the pivoted detent I38 to lock the bag retaining rollsI21 against the bag B and casing 46 during the bag packing period asshown in dotted positions in Figs. 4, 5 and 10 while the energizing ofsolenoid II6 thru its lever connection to detent I38 allows all theparts to return to neutral or released position by means of tensioningsprings I08 andI I1. During the rocking cycle of shaft II4, arm I38causes the mercury switch I39 to be tilted into circuit-clos ingposition for actuating solenoid I40, thru the turning of arm I4Iattached to the shaft of the mercury switch I39 mounted in casing I42 onplate II8 bolted to standard I3.

The standard I2 supports a bracket I43 having thereon a casing I44 whichhas therein a mercury switch I45. The shaft of said switch carries anarm I48 operated by a bell crank lever having'an extended manuallyoperated handle member I41 which is operated by the machine operatorduring the latter part of the upward movement of the bag B whenassembling it around casing 48. This switch is located at a fixedposition on standard I3 so the operator can conveniently operate handlemember I41, as shown in Figs. 5 and '1.

All of the apparatus thus far referred to is operated by the motor 84when pawl tooth 90' is released to engage the interdental spaces 9I inring 15 with the exception of the flour packing discharge screws 43' and44 which are operated from the transmission mechanism contained withinthetransmission case I8 which mechanism is driven by the electric motorI48 (Fig. 8). Driving belts I49 from the pulleys I50 on motor shaft I53encased in housing I54 which is held by means of cap screws I54 totransmission case Pinion I52 meshes with and drives bevel gear I55 (Fig.6) that is keyed to and has extending perpendicularly therefrom acylindrical shaft member I58 having formed integrally therewith anenlarged annular head I51 with a plurality of longitudinal openings I58'extending down wardly from its upper rim surface; it must be understoodthat only these parts run continuously'with motor I48. The head I51 maybe designated as a cup or holder to receive a multiple number ofslidable discs I59 every alternate disc turning with said holder thruits engagement with said longitudinal openings I 58 while the balance ofthe discs are slidably mounted and keyed at I60 to shaft IGI to drivesaid shaft when pressure is applied to them from shifting 'collar I62thru the following passageways. The pressure originates at pump 69;thence thru valve 10, pipe I83 into chambers I84 to outlets I65 againstthe top of pistons or yoke carrying pins I66 and I81 which are retainedas shown in Fig. 3 by means of spring I68 when the machine is idle, orin neutral position.

These pins have attached thereto ayoke I89 carrying supporting rollerI18 which engages a yoke shifting collar I82 thus causing the yoke to beshifted vertically downwards when driving, or upwards when applying thebrakes to said shaft I8I by means of the discs I1I. These discs I1I areidentical in construction to disc I59 and are slidably retained in astationary annular ring or cup I12 keyed at I13 to hub I14 of plate 28.Said ring has therein a plurality of longitudinal openings I15 similarto opening I58 which prevent every alternate disc I1I from turning whilethe balance of said discs are slidably mounted and keyed to shaft I8I bykeys I18 in said shaft. Thus the discs operate in combination with eachother to stop said shaft I8I when hydraulic pressure is applied thruoutlet I11 to the bottom of the. pistons or yoke carrying pins I85 andI81 from the pump 89 by way of valve 18 thru pipe I18 into chambers I19of case I8. The chambers I19 are identical in construction with chambersI84 .withln the case I8 as shown in Fig. 12. While I have shown anddescribed the use of friction discs for driving and braking shaft I8I,it must be understood that any other suitable means may be used such aseither a jaw or cone type of clutch. The shaft I8I provides the meansfor driving the already mentioned screws 43 and 44, whose lower ends donot contact the retlcu lated bottom 45 of casing 48 but as shown in Fig.'7, are spaced therefrom for clearance, the flour being maintainedtherein by the metal network I88. Said shaft I8I extends centrallyvertically above and below the-driving and braking discs for the purposeof driving in combination or braking other units or parts of themachine. The parts below the discs which will now be referred to,consist of driving means which are spur gears I88, I8I and I82 whichmesh with gear I88 and are integral with shafts I83 and I84 that aresupported by means of bearings in housings 24 and 25, the shaft I8Ibeing supported in bearings of plate 28 and housings I8, 23 and 25. Thegear I88 rotating in clockwise direction drives shafts I83 and I84 inanti-clockwise direction as seen from a horizontal cross sectional view.Thus the shafts I8I and I83 drive in opposite directions the augers 43and 44 which are connected to auger shafts I85 and I88 by means ofcouplings I81.

The shaft I84 is shown in Fig. 6 without a screw attached thereto, butit can readily be understood that the casing M can be replaced by meansof bolts 48, with another form of easing that will receive the presenttwo screws 43 and 44, along with a screw attached to shaft I84. In likemanner, only one central screw may be used by replacing the presentcasing M with one suitable for a single screw. The portion of shaft I8Iextending centrally vertical above disc HI and plate 28 has keyedthereto a sprocket I88 which drives by means of a chain I89 a sprocketI98 attached to the upper end of a shaft in speed reducer I9I. Thereduced speed shaft from said reducer I9I is coupled at I92 to verticalshaft I93 within housing I94 supported at I95 and I98 on standard I3.

The lower end of shaft I93 has keyed thereto a gear I98, and a crankdisc I91, said disc being connected by means of an arm I98 and link I99to a vertical sleeve 288 which encases shaft I8I in hopper 29, as shownin Figs. 3, 6 and 9. Said sleeve 288 is rotatably mounted and encased ina cylindrical extension 28I which is integral with and extendsvertically down from the inside surface of cover plate 28. At the lowerend of said sleeve 288 Just below the lower extremity of extension 28Iis a pair of spokes 282-integral with said sleeve 288 and extendingtherefrom in a horizontal plane between the shafts I83 and I84 to alongitudinal cylindrical member 283 having extending downwardlytherefrom a plurality of fingers 0r agitators 284 which agitate theflour within hopper 29 and casing 4I during the agitating by crank discI91. The gear I98, already referred to, drives a gear 285 that is keyedto a vertical shaft 288 journaled at 281 and also in an oblong shapedcasing 288 at 289.

The shaft 288 has keyed thereto at its lower extremity within casing 288adjacent bearing 289 a cup member 2I I which has independently supportedtherein by means of a ball bearing 2I2 the upper end of a verticalauxiliary shaft 2I3 that is supported at its lower end in a bearing 2I4,said shaft being in vertical alinement with shaft 286. The cup member 2retainsslidably therein a plurality of discs 2I5 which in combinationcause the shaft 2I3 to rotate with the driving shaft 286 when theshifting yoke collar 2I8 is operated. Said collar 2I8 is engaged by aroller 2I1 mounted on lever arm 2I8 which fulcrums at 2I9 on bracket228. its other end being fastened by resilient means to the shaft ofsolenoid I48. The shaft 2I3 has keyed thereto adjacent the bearing 2 acylindrical cam 22I which operates a roller 222 on the end of arm 223that is integral with shaft 224 mounted in bearings 225 in case 288.Attached thereto on the outer end of shaft 224 outside of case 288 isanother lever arm 228 which operates a rod 221 supported freely inbearings 228 and 229 on standard I3.

The arm 228 operating in synchronism with 1ever arm 223, as shown inFig. 18, rod 221 can be connected directly to arm 223. The lower end ofrod 221 has secured thereon an adjustable collar 238 for retaining onsaid rod between said collar and bearing 229 a compression spring 238which retains said rod, lever arms and cam 22I in neutral or inoperativeposition as shown in Figs. '1 and 13. Interposed between said bearings228 and 229 is an adjustable collar 23I which operates an arm 232attached to shaft 233 of a tilting mercury switch 234 contained withincasing 235, said collar also operating an air valve lever arm 238 whichcontrols the valve on shaft 231 in air valve 238' having an inlet pipe239 and an outlet air supply pipe 88 to passageway 58 already referredto. The inlet air supply may be from any suitable source and the amountgoing thru outlet pipe 88 can be controlled with some standard form ofneedle valve construction by air operating knob and pin 248. Other meansnot shown may be used for controlling the air to said pipe 68, such asan air piston electrically or mechanically controlled from some meansattached to the machine frame.

The operation and advantage of the machine will now be described incombination with the schematic view shown in Figs. 16 and 18. Theoperator of the machine takes a bag B and by means of its fillingopening assembles said opening around the discharge end 45 of casing 48then drawing said bag upwards on said casing until the bottom of the bagand the lower end of the casing contact each other as shown in Fig. 16with the sides of the bag or other receptacle gripped by the retainingrolls I21. During this upward movement, the operator also 01)- eratesmercury switch I45 by means of lever arm I41 momentarily closing thecircuit from line 24I, thru switch contacts I45 into line 243, solenoid64, and out into line 244, thus releasing detent 62 and causing shaft I6to start its cycle of one revolution by means of pawl arm 66' contactingat 9| the annular driving wheel I5. The

movement of shaft I6 pulls arm II2 down by means of the lobe II on camI64, thus operating lever II 3 which rocks shaft I I4 in acounterclockwise direction causing the arm I23 to be locked into avertical position by detent I36, as shown dotted in Fig. 5. The tensionspring 245, acting in combination with the lever linkage I36 of solenoidII6, insures a positive lock for said arm I23.

While this locking movement of shaft H4 is taking place the rolls I21are starting to retain the bag to casing 46 by means of the lever armconnections I26, I36, etc., already explained, so that the bag will bein position as shown in Figs. 5 and 16 and as shown in dotted positionin Fig. 10, just before the tilting of mercury switch I36; closing ofsaid switch completes the circuit from line 24I to line 246 thru coilI46 and out into line 244 operating coil I46 which moves the arm 2I6 andshifting collar 2I6, thus engaging the discs 2I5. The shafts 266 and 2I3are now ready to operate as one unit; but this engagement of the discs2I5 takes place practically a short time before, or in synchronism withthe engagement of driving clutch discs I56 on shaft I6I so that theflour feed screws 43 and 44 start to operate simultaneously with theturning of cam 22I. These flour feed screws start to operate thru theclosing of a circuit operated by com I6I on shaft 16, said cam operatingswitch I62 to close the circuit thru the upper solenoid 241 of hydraulicvalve I6 to shift the piston 246 into the position shown in Fig. 17. Thecircuit from line 24I travels thru switch I02 and line 243 to solenoidcoil 24! thence out thru line 244.

This position of piston 246 allows the liquid from tank 63 to be pumpedunder pressure as registered on gauge III by the pump 63 up thru by-passvalve 256 thru pipe 25I into a common intake port 252 of valve I6 thenceinto port 253 and pipe I63 into chambers I64 and I65 against the top ofpiston or yoke carrying pins I66 and I", thus causing engagement ofdiscs I53, thereby driving the shaft I6I having the screw 43 thereon andby means of gears I66 and I6I, driving the screw 44, while at the sametime driving shafts I63, 266 and 2I3 thru the discs I53, chain I66 anddiscs 2I5. With parts operating as disclosed the flour is firmly packedinto the bag B,

causing said bag to move down casing 46 while it is yieldably heldthereon by the retaining rolls I21. At the same time the cylindrical cam22I is rotated by shafts 266 and 2I3, thence thru roller 222 on arm 223,the shaft 224 is rocked in a clockwise direction and rocking therewiththe arm 226. The arm 226 is now pulling rod 22I upwards against thetension of spring 236 causing collar 23I to engage switch arm 232 movingit upwards thereby rotating shaft 233 and tilting mercury switch 234,thus closing the circuit through line 24I and switch 234 to the commonline 264 of solenoid coil 255 on valve 16 and bag release coil II6,thence out from both coil into line 244. It can be readily seen that therelease -coil II6 will release detent I36 from arm I23 and thetensioning spring I I1 will release the retaining rolls I21 from the bagB allowing it to descend to the platform while at the same time springI66 pulls the cam roller I65 up against the cam I64, as shown in Fig.18, while the brake discs "I are applied to shaft I6I.

By means of the solenoid 255, the piston 246,

the disengagement of collar 23I with arm 232 automatically opens'allclosed circuits. Furthermore, it must be understood that the handoperated switch I is only operated momentarily when the bag is placed onthe casing 46 because the solenoid 64 must be energized and thendeenergized to be in position to stop the shaft 16 on its completion ofone revolution. This is done by the detent arm 92 engaging the arm 66 ofpawl 86 when said pawl returns at the end of one revolution, thusdisengaging said pawl arm 66' from the interdental spaces' 9l in annularring I5. The return pipe 251 from chambers 256 and 253 allows for theoil to'return to the tank from the transmission port opposite the portto which the pressure is applied while the return pipe 266 may be usedto carry any dis-z charged oil into the transmission I6 for lubricationpurposes, and therefore it would be necessary to hav discharge pipe 26LThe by-pass valve 256 is used as a by-pass for the oil.

As explained in the specification, the auxiliary air supply to bag B isapplied at the same time or approximately so when switch arm 232 iscontacted by collar 23I. The purpose of this air is to prevent vacuum atthe filling opening of the bag during its'downward travel and to preventspillage of the flour from the opening of the bag because each bag ispacked with most of the entrained a ir removed so as to contain thereina fixed weight or quantity of flour. The-pressure of the packing and thedownward movement of the flour due to entrained aircauses the flour tobe forced upwards in the bag above the level-of the flour dischargeopening, and thus as the bag moves down, the casing acts like a pistonand tends to draw the walls of the bag in against said discharge end.The mouth of the bag naturally moves out away from the casing above thedischarge end forming a. funnel with said flour entrapped therein. Asthe bag continues to move down and the entrapped flour is forced tospill out over the filling opening of the bag, there is then an unequalamount of flour in each bag.

To prevent the piston like action or vacuum at the upper portion of thebag; said air released thru channels. 56 will force the bag away fromdischarge end of casing 46, thus allowing the bag to descend along saidcasing with the predetermined amount of flour therein, insuring at alltimes no spillage of flour and a bag having the exact predeterminedquantity or weight which the apparatus is adJusted to pack into the bag.

To further carry out the purpose of the machine in having a bag packedwith a predetermined amount of flour, the flour feed screws 43 and 44are arranged to revolve in opposing directions, one having a right andthe other a lefthand helical web to provide for the downward feed of theflour. The faces of the helical webs are arranged as shown in Fig. 15 tooverlap in closely adjacent relation so as to coact with each other toprovide this positive downward movement to the flour because the pitchangle of the helic'al web face imparts an axial component and atangential component thereto. Here use is made of the opposing radial orhorizontal components of the "respective helical webs cancelling eachother to give a' positive resultant component of force in an axialdirection. This positive force is caused by the creation of an area ofhigh pressure due to the wedging action of the opposing helical faces,which overlap as much as possible and which are located as close to eachother as possible so as to prevent the passage of the flour back betweenthe screws and to cause it to be propelled axially by the screws. Flourcarried around a little more than 180 degrees will enter the highpressure area and be propelled in an axial direction. While I have shownand described two screws it must be understood that any number ofmultiple screws may be arranged to coact to give similar results.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. In a machine for firmly packing bags with a comminuted material, avertical filling tube of oblong cross section, supporting meanstherefor,

a pair of rolls on opposite sides of the tube swingably mounted on thesupporting means, each roll having a yieldable face and adapted to swinginto contact with the face of the tube to grip a bag therebetween, meansfor pressing said roll to squeeze a bag into surface contact with thefilling tube, said rolls and said tube being so positioned and arrangedwith respect to each other that the bag is substantially unstretched andonly a binding action between the bag, tube and roll results so thatfriction between the bag-the roll and the tube at the place wherepressure is applied offers substantially the sole means for supportingthe bag and contents, and means for intermittently forcibly feeding thematerial through the tube to cause the bag to move down the tube.

2. In a machine for firmly packing bags with a comminuted material, avertical filling tube of oblong cross section, supporting meanstherefor, a pair of rolls on opposite sides of the tube swingablymounted on vertical axes on the supporting means, each roll having ayieldable face and adapted to swing into contact with the face of thetube to grip a bag therebetween, means for pressing said rolls tosqueeze a bag into surface contact with the filling tube, said rolls andsaid tube being so positioned and arranged with respect to each otherthat the bag is substantiallyunstretched and only a binding actionbetween the bag, tube and roll results so that friction between the bag,the roll and the tube at the place where pressure is applied offerssubstantially the sole means for supporting the bag and contents, andmeans for intermittently forcibly feeding the material through the tubeto cause the bag to move down the tube.

3. In a machine for firmly packing bags with a comminuted material, avertical filling tube of oblong cross section, supporting meanstherefor, a pair of rolls on opposite sides of the tube sw ably mountedon the supporting means, each roll.

having'a yieldable face and adapted to swing into contact with the faceof the tube to grip a bag therebetween, means for pressing said roll tosqueeze a bag into surface contact with convex surfaces of the fillingtube, said rolls and said tube being so positioned and arranged withrespect to each other that the bag is substantially unstretched and onlya binding action between the bag, tube and roll results so that frictionbetween the bag, the roll and the tube at the place where pressure isapplied oifers substantially the sole means for supporting the bag andcontents, and means for intermittently forcibly feeding the materialthrough the tube to cause the bag to move down the tube.

GEORGE LONG.

